Italian cyclist Debora Silvestri was taken to hospital following a serious crash during the women's Milano-Sanremo race on Saturday. The 27-year-old tumbled over a guardrail on the descent of the Cipressa climb, less than 20km from the finish. Her team, Laboral Kutxa, confirmed she is in a stable condition and undergoing further tests.
The crash also involved pre-race favourites Kasia Niewiadoma Phinney and Kim Le Court Pienaar. Niewiadoma Phinney was forced to abandon, while Le Court Pienaar remounted but finished 99th. The women's race was won by Lotte Kopecky in a sprint finish.
In the men's race, Tadej Pogacar recovered from his own fall about 30km from the finish to win the 300km classic for the first time. The Slovenian crashed heavily, shredding his shorts and leaving him bloodied, but remounted and battled back to the front.
Pogacar attacked on the Poggio climb, dropping defending champion Mathieu van der Poel, but could not shake Tom Pidcock. The pair sprinted to the line, with Pogacar winning by half a wheel. Pidcock described the defeat as 'disappointing' but praised Pogacar as 'the best cyclist ever'.
Wout van Aert, also caught in the crash, finished third. He said: 'I saw him next to me on the ground... the next moment I saw him again was after the finish. It must have been impressive.'
